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Print Edition StoriesFriday, March 20, 2009
Clean tech makes up bigger percentage of VC funding in Q4
By Efrain Viscarolasaga
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Investment in the clean technology sector dropped slightly in the fourth quarter of 2008, though gained ground as a percentage of the national average, according to a new report released this week by Topline Strategy Group of Newton.
New England saw seven clean tech financing deals in the fourth quarter, down from nine in Q3, but just above the rolling average of the previous four quarters, or 6.5 deals per quarter.
Those seven deals represented $68.2 million in investment, a drop of almost $25 million from the third quarter. However, those deals also represented 11 percent of the average quarterly investment nationwide, up from 10.6 percent in the third quarter.
Of the seven investments, $55 million was represented in two deals — the $30 million funding of Watertown-based battery maker A123Systems Inc., and the $25 million investment in Marlborough-based ethanol tech firm Qteros Inc.
Early stage investments, a strong indicator of the pace of innovation according to Jonathan Klein, founder and general partner of Topline, gained somewhat in the fourth quarter. Four of the deals — Eco Power Solutions Corp. of Quincy, Regen Power Systems Inc. of New Salem, Solasta Inc. of Newton, and Lightwave Power Inc. of Cambridge — were first round deals. West Lebanon, N.H.-based SustainX Inc. landed its second round. In the third quarter, only three of the nine investments were first round deals, while three others were second round investments.
Clean tech investing grew in 2008, reaching $4.1 billion over 277 deals, up from $2.7 billion over 238 deals in 2007, said the MoneyTree report by PriceWaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association.
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